The Blog

Formerly known as the little sister of Beyonce, now more famous for crafting a wedding whose images have been flooding all of your social media timelines for the last 3 days.

I, too, am obsessed.

I used to wonder what it was like to be Solange, what the pressure was like to grow up in (what seemed like) Beyonce's shadows, constantly being compared to her older sister and under the firm hand of a national media that was trying to craft her in the same mold. That can be a lot to manage at 17, especially when you're getting married and having a baby. But fast forward 11 years later, where Solange has blossomed into this energetic force of her own, as an in-demand DJ, songwriter, fashion icon, performer, model, mother and now, wife to music video director Alan Ferguson.

She has SLAIN everyone with this wedding, not BECAUSE she got married, but because of HOW it was done. She took every last one of us to school with a lesson that applies to so many areas of life, but since I'm a designer, let's talk design, shall we?

Solange's approach to her wedding was a visually breathtaking and awesome reminder that following the beat of your own drum is really where you find your sweet spot. Even if you don't love all of her choices (say WHET???), you have to hand it to her--she single-handedly changed the game by throwing the wedding celebration of her dreams and took the internet by storm in the process. She's a celebrity so it's true that it would've made in the news anyhow, but the sheer volume of coverage was definitely due to her stylistic choices. Her wedding album is unconventional in a way that makes you step back in awe at how bold her choices were...and how cookie-cutter and mass-produced everything else is starting to look. ;-(

Well, my friends, that's what happens when you live without intention.

My thought?

It's never too late to course correct & do something different, whether in design, work or life (and when it comes to designing your home, WHY AREN'T you doing something different??).

Here's what Solange did:

She got crystal clear about who she is and designed her wedding day 100% around that.

How do you extend this philosophy to designing your home?

It starts with knowing yourself--really. Figuring out who you are, what makes you happy and what you really love, then finding ways to incorporate you, your happiness, and your loves into your decor. And I'm not talking specific items here, I mean clarity about the larger, important things, then creating an actionable plan as you work your way down to the specifics.

Know what Solo's wedding shows me that she really loves?

Her family. Her fashion. Her art. Her hair. A good party. Her man. And most of all, herself.

If I were to take a guess at the words that guided how she wanted to FEEL on her wedding day they'd be: Beauty. Love. Style. Joy. Family. Fun. Laughter.

Because that's exactly what I feel when I look at all of her pics. And THAT is the purpose of creating a home, an event, and a life with intention.

Your essence should be all over that shit.

So let's stop worrying about what's on-trend. Cease fretting over something you love that may have been "done 1,000 times". Trust me--what's more interesting and infinitely more meaningful is creating a home that speaks to who you are. Nothing (and I mean not one single solitary thing) should be in your house that you don't love the hell out of.

LOVE.

Ain't nobody got time for that.

So if that means using a pattern that's appeared in every shelter magazine since 1985, I still say go for it. All that matters is that you truly love it. 'Cause ultimately, we should all be driven to identify what makes our hearts flutter, and then make it our mission to fill our lives with as much of those things as we can, in the way that feels right for each one of us.

Just like Solange.

If you'd like help designing a space that looks and feels like you, I'd love to speak with you! Send an email to: dayka@daykarobinsondesigns.com or call: 678.558.6731 and let's see how we can work together.

DAYKA ROBINSON

Being in alignment with your personal values is how you foster trust, self respect & personal integrity with yourself. And the only way to truly be in alignment is to make decisions that are in your BEST INTEREST, based on who you say you want to be. 